A note from the Marketing Manager
Spring couldn’t have come at a better time. Whether the first of September is going to be a glorious sunny day, or a dreary, rainy day, the flip of the calendar page inevitably warrants a sigh of relief and a sense of fresh energy and hope. “New normal”, “back to normal”, “where has the time gone”, “crazy times”, and “uncertain times” are all expressions we have all grown tired of by now. Truth is, we just want to be normal again, without being reminded that for a while there, things weren’t, and maybe they still aren’t. What is normal, anyway? People want to thrive and not merely survive. They want to talk instead of reflect, connect instead of Zoom, they want to dream, they want to hope. I could feel it in the Emirates Park stadium, at the Bloemfontein tasting turned quiz night where the Golden oldies team walked away with the win and stayed until last, at every event, at every tasting, at every award show, with every social media interaction. With September around the corner, may you experience a renewed sense of wonder, hope and joy – we look forward to celebrate with you and in the process, share our passion and love for wine.
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Since we last spoke in winter, the replanting of more than 15,000 new vines at De Krans is now well underway. The replanting process is quite an intricate one. Once the young vines are planted in the middle of carefully curated holes and the roots covered with soil, they are watered for about 48 hours to make sure the soil is completely saturated to give the vines the best chance of survival. So begins the long process of nourishing and nurturing these baby vines until they are ready to produce their first crop after three to four years.
Currently, we are planting a new big block of Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as two smaller blocks of Chardonnay. In addition, the team is planting new vines in two existing blocks of Tinta Barocca and three blocks of Touriga Nacional, where vines died during the drought of the past five years. So, instead of replanting a whole block, approximately 20-30% of vines that have died, are replaced by young vines in each affected block – really not an easy thing to do. However, as true farmers, we are positive about the future of these new vines after the devastating drought!
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We would like to thank everyone involved in the organization of the Calitzdorp Expressed Festival that took place from 17 -19 June, with a special thanks to Jakhals Events who hosted the Saturday 5km, 10km, and 21km running events – it was a great success. An even bigger thanks to everyone who visited and supported De Krans Wines – we enjoyed celebrating with you and loved sharing our food, wine and scenic views with you. Supporting festivals like this enables us, as well as the Calitzdorp community, to continue treating guests to our Klein Karoo hospitality.
We have two exciting events coming up so be sure to save the dates and invite your friends and family to experience and enjoy a nice getaway to the countryside. First up, is the annual De Krans Blossom Festival, which will be taking place on Saturday 3 September. A variety of activities include live music, face painting, a children’s play area, Bottomless Mimosas happy hour from 11am – 12pm, walks through the apricot and peach orchards in bloom and the opportunity to take beautiful pictures as well as supporting our local charity, Friends of Calitzdorp Animals stand. Wine tasting and sales will be open from 9am – 5pm with brand new 2022 white wine vintages available for tasting, as well as the De Krans Bistro which will be serving delicious, homemade food from 9am – 4pm. There will also be a spring dance the evening at the Calitzdorp Station at 7pm. For more information, please contact De Krans at 044 2133 314. We look forward to celebrate the start of spring with you.
Next up is the Calitzdorp Succulent Festival from 16 – 18 September. This truly spectacular and special festival, held each year in Calitzdorp, sees a variety of succulent lovers and experts flock to the Klein Karoo to celebrate the beauty of the succulent. At De Krans we will have wine tasting and sales available on Friday and Saturday from 9 am – 5pm and on Sunday from 9am – 4pm. Enjoy a delicious breakfast, lunch or platter at the De Krans Bistro open from 9am – 4pm, with live music by Andre Combrinck on Saturday, 17 September. Contact Calitzdorp Tourism on 044 2133775 for more information on the Succulent Festival.
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We are pleased to introduce our new Brand Ambassador and representative in Gauteng, Alex Greenleaf. Alex has worked in the South African wine industry for the past decade and has gained a wide range of experience with wine sales and distribution during this time. He believes in the power of fostering and sustaining strong account relationships and is also passionate about developing food and wine pairings and staff training, having gained first-hand experience as a restaurant owner. He is currently studying for his WSET Level 3 diploma and contributes to a number of local publications writing on beer and wine. In his free time, Alex enjoys camping, wildlife and birding. He is also an avid sports fan, and, of course, a wine collector. Alex is an absolute team player and exudes an outgoing and positive energy – we are excited to have him on the team!
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On the competition front, the good news continues with great results from the first award shows of the year. The De Krans Cape Vintage Reserve 2012 received the Trophy for the Best Museum Class Cape Port at the 2022 Investec Trophy Wine Show Awards that was announced beginning July with a score of 97/100 points. It is a well-known fact that port-style wines have the amazing capability to mature for many years, and this 2012 Cape Vintage Reserve is no different. Whether you store the bottle away for a special occasion or gift it for a special birthday, the best is definitely yet to come with this style of wine.
Our other wines that received awards include the De Krans Cape Vintage Reserve 2018 – 93/100, De Krans Tritonia Verdelho 2021 – 89/100, De Krans Touriga Nacional 2020 – 88/100, and the De Krans Cape Tawny Limited Release NV – 87/100.
Right on the heels of the Trophy Wine show, De Krans showcased the beauty and uniqueness of their Klein Karoo Terroir at the 2022 Terroir Awards. Our still-to-be-released 2020 Touriga Nacional was crowned as a National Winner, and both the De Krans 2021 Tritonia Verdelho and 2022 Garden Route Sauvignon Blanc were crowned as Regional Winners.
De Krans once again won the Trophy for the Best Private Wine Cellar in the Klein Karoo region at the 2022 Klein Karoo Young Wine Show, as well as the Reserve Champion Wine of the Show. We also won no less than seven class winners across all styles of wines, for our Tritonia Verdelho, Pinotage Rosé, Tinta Roriz, Cape Ruby, Cape Tawny Limited Release, Cape Vintage, as well as our Muscat Blanc, all wines from the 2022 vintage.
At the 2022 South African Young Wine Show, where results were announced on Friday 26 August in Paarl, De Krans walked away with the Trophy for the best Cape Style, their Cape Vintage, with their Cape Tawny Limited Release announced as the runner up.
A massive thanks to all the persons involved in organizing and hosting these competitions and awards events – we appreciate the support of the wine industry and are humbled by the honour and recognition received.
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We all know that more often than not, it rains on the first of September – especially in the Western Cape. Even though days are becoming warmer, evenings are still chilly and when the sun goes down, we tend to reach for that glass of red. The change of seasons gives us the best of both worlds when it comes to being able to enjoy a variety of wines, and our special handpicked, Spring Selection is no different. Try something new, and be sure to tag us whilst enjoying your wine by using the hashtag #DeKransSpringSelection.
The De Krans Free Run Chenin Blanc 2022 is a delicious unwooded wine perfect for all Chenin lovers. The unique, boutique style De Krans Free Run Chenin Blanc is packed with fresh ripe tropical fruit, banana, guava and passion fruit flavours, with hints of lime. Aptly known as the Free Run Chenin Blanc, because only the free run part of the juice is used, resulting in more intense fruit flavours, complexity and longevity with an integrated and fresh acidity. This wine is light enough to drink on its own (well chilled), but also pairs well with summer salads and seafood dishes. If you are looking for an interesting, off the beaten track Chenin Blanc at an affordable price, give this one a try!
Spring is the month of celebrating all things new and a fresh start and what better way to celebrate than enjoying our brand new release, the De Krans Premium P&T, a Port-Style & Tonic ready-to-drink cocktail. De Krans Wines is synonymous with port-style wines and we look forward to share our love of port with a broader audience. The De Krans Premium P&T is the first and only ready-to-drink port-style wine and tonic in South Africa, and is produced using Cape White port-style wine, made from grapes from 56-year-old Malvasia Rei vineyards. The P&T is naturally sweet with refreshing tropical flavours of granadilla, pineapple, and citrus fruit. We are proud to say that all the flavours are natural, with no artificial flavours used. With a good acidity and balancing sugar content from the Cape White Port-style wine, this delicious, exciting new product is best served chilled, from the glass bottle, in a bubbly glass or a tumbler with the garnish of your choice.
Arguably, one of the most delicious and underrated wines in our portfolio is the unique red wine, De Krans A Twist of Fate 2019. This lighter style red blend pleasantly surprises just like the story behind the wine itself. With its lovely cherry red colour, this Portuguese blend pays tribute to the start of the first Portuguese grape varieties that made their way to Calitzdorp in the Klein Karoo – the Tinta Barocca in 1973 and the Tinta Amarela in 2004. Both varieties were planted by mistake, believed to be different grape varieties, and by this pure accident, the port capital of South Africa got its start. Similar to a Pinot Noir in style and drinking occasion, this red wine is best served slightly chilled and boasts flavours of strawberry, red cherries, spice, leather, earthiness, and subtle oak. This wine embraces the change of the season like no other and manages to adapt and showcase itself equally great on a warm day as it does a colder evening.
We can’t talk Spring Selection without mentioning the Premium Red Moscato Perlé 2022. The richness of the palate and the freshness of the bubble once again make this wine perfect for any kind of weather, which is so typical of Spring, especially September. Following the success of the White Moscato, the Red counterpart was first made in 2017. The 15% Pinotage wine, added to give it the red colour, changes the fruit profile considerably to flavours of berries, litchi, soft prunes and muscat, with strawberries, blackcurrants and exotic spice on the palate. The red grapes also result in a complex mouth feel and a crisp finish. While this wine is wonderful and light on its own (remember to serve chilled), it also pleasantly surprises when paired with fresh, summer salads, charcuterie and spicy food like mild curries.
Last but not least in our Spring Selection is the De Krans Premium Cape Ruby. Named after its brilliant vibrant ruby colour, this is a non-vintage port-style wine, indicating a blend of different vintages to produce a well-rounded wine. The wine is smooth and has velvety tannins to compliment the ripe plum, blue and red berries with a touch of cinnamon, spice and violets, making it the perfect port-style wine to use for cooking (or baking). Go ahead and add the De Krans Premium Cape Ruby generously to your potjie or any meat dish in a slow cooker – guaranteed to take your meat dish to that next level. The Cape Ruby also pairs well with traditional Cape bobotie, waterblommetjie –bredie, rustic pastas and hearty soups, and of course, any chocolate dessert.
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Whether you purchase your favourite De Krans Wines or try something new, any orders over the value of R2000 placed between the 31st August and 30th September 2022, will automatically be entered into our spring giveaway competition, where three lucky winners will each win a case of 24 x 275ml of our brand new, premium P&T (Port-style and Tonic). Any person over the age of 18 with a valid SA delivery address will be eligible to enter this giveaway.
Order wine to a minimum value of R2000 and receive a free door-to-door delivery nationwide (one delivery address per order). Should your order be for less than R2000, we are happy to calculate a delivery quote based on your delivery address. We will then furnish you with a pro forma invoice with our banking details. Please note that, regardless of the value of your order, we will only be able to courier wine in multiples of 6 bottles (a full case), and in the case of our P&T a total of 24 x 275ml bottles will make up a full case, to minimize breakages.
